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Ruby's older stepbrother, 19-year-old Harrison Hepton, has previously described how their mother let out a horrified scream after being told there was 'a girl in the river'.

Witness Andrew Marseden, 36, said about 500 people were milling around the riverside and nearby tents. But he said no-one had spotted the youngster in the water to begin with.

Tributes are laid at the scene where little Ruby fell face first into the water when she went to feed the ducks and swans

'She was feeding the ducks and fell in face first,' he told Mirror Online. 'Mum was helping out disabled kids and near some tents in front of the river where the girl fell in. The little girl would have been about 30 feet away.'

He added: 'It's not the family's fault. My kids wander off all the time.'